三国杀! San Guo Sha Cardgame English Walkthrough

One Million Views!!

2012-02-14T22:11:00.000+08:00

Thanks everyone!! Although Xia Xue's blog has the same number of views within 3 weeks as this blog has in 3 years, it still feels warm and fuzzy to hit the 7 digit threshold.

Hope you guys are enjoying SGS! This blog continue to post interesting articles as long as people keep reading them.

杀!

Zhao Yun 赵云 (*SP001)

2012-02-12T17:04:00.001+08:00

Translated description:
“The Vanguard on a White Horse 白马先锋 (bái mǎ xiān fēng)”

Who is he:
For goodness sake, this is Zhao Yun! I'm pretty sure you do not need me to describe who he is. But just in case you do, here's a one-sentence summary.

Zhao Yun is one of Liu Bei 刘备's most accomplished generals, but while he was younger he was part of Gongsun Zan 公孙瓒's army, thus the Neutral Heroes allegiance here.

Why is he an SP character:
I'm going to be politically incorrect here. I do NOT think that Zhao Yun needs an SP version. The official reports state that the SP versions are an upgrade so that the original characters will not fall behind.

Rubbish!

The original Zhao Yun is still strong as heck, and has one of the best abilities ever created in this game: creative, adequate, simple. So why do they need to make Zhao Yun unbalanced? Well, I guess everyone will have their opinion. Who knows? I might just like this character after I lay my hands on it.

Or maybe not.

Character ability 1: "Dragon Heart 龙胆 (lóng dǎn)"
All ATTACK 杀 and DODGE 闪 cards can be used interchangeably.

Character ability 2: "Formation Piercer 冲阵 (chōng zhèn)"
Whenever you use or play an on-hand card to activate “Dragon Heart”, you can immediately take an on-hand card from the opponent.

Note: "Opponent" here refers to either the player who caused you to activate "Dragon Heart" (the player that uses "Raining Arrows 万箭齐发"), or the person on the receiving end of "Dragon Heart" (you use DODGE as an ATTACK on that player).

Additional info based on changes (by Reijishiki):
This is the young Zhao Yun serving Gongsun Zan, the Whitehorse General. According to Zhuo You Zhi magazine, his 3 units health reflects his immaturity while his new ability reflects his contributions in The Battle of Jie Bridge 界桥之战. In that battle, Yuan Shao 袁绍 rained arrows on Gongsun Zan and almost decimated his entire army. When Gongsun Zan’s was on the brink of collapse, the young Zhao Yun charged into Yuan Shao’s vast army and single-handedly killed Yuan Shao’s general with one strike, with time left to spare to save Gongsun Zan's rear-end.

Trivia:
Zhao Yun became the 3rd character with more than two character cards in SGS. The first was Zhuge Liang 诸葛亮 and the second one was Lu Bu 吕布. Note that the card of young Zhao Yun is two-sided and slightly smaller than the usual character cards. This card is not meant to be shuffled into the character's deck, but rather to be substituted for the original Zhao Yun card if the player chooses to use him.

Wiki Links:
Zhao Yun Wiki

How to obtain this character?
Purchase the 13th issue of Zhuo You Zhi magazine to get this limited character card as a free gift!

Contributing Writers:
- Reijishiki
- Ricky Chua

Revamped SP characters for 2012?!

2012-02-06T22:51:00.002+08:00

Now this may not be shocking news to all of you, after all I am blogging about this well into February. So if you already know about this, feel free to click "Comment" below and put in your opinions.

For the rest of the world... BIG NEWS!

YOKA has officially announced that they are re-introducing SP characters starting from the January 2012 edition of Zhuo You Zhi magazine (13th issue).

The "new" *SP001 issued in January 2012 is SP Zhao Yun, with a completely different artwork and character frame.

If you've been keeping track of the collectible SP characters in 2011, you will know that SP001 was the code for SP Yang Xiu, which is now INCREDIBLY RARE! What does this mean for SP Yang Xiu then? Is it getting exterminated from SGS altogether? Why give its "identity number" to another card? Doesn't it seem like a conspiracy to wipe-out SP Yang Xiu and pretend it never existed?

Does this also mean it is going to happen to all the SP cards in 2011??

Here's what I think.

If you were one of the very lucky ones who bought 2011 SP cards, you have struck gold!! Now that the new SP cards of 2012 are going to obliterate the old ones from existence, it just meant that 2011 SP cards have multiplied in value!

(Note: The new SP cards can be used together with the old SP cards. They will clearly be differentiated based on the frame art, as well as a star symbol beside the identity number. Eg: *SP001.)

It's always the rare items that were produced in very small amounts, then terminated quickly, that are the most rare.

Ok I know what you are thinking. "You're just saying that to push sales for your 2011 SP cards." The truth is I don't have many SP cards left from 2011. I'm keeping my SP001 Yang Xiu and SP002 Diao Chan, unless I can find some more to bring in at reasonable prices.

In my next post, I shall be blogging the translation of the official announcement from YOKA regarding this change in SP series.

Till then, keep on gaming! 杀!

Outing Confirmed: 5th February!

2012-02-03T17:37:00.000+08:00

Thanks for everyone who has registered for this meet up! The tables have been booked for that day, so I look forward to seeing you there.

5th February (Sunday)
1:00pm to 4:00pm (can be extended)
Settler's Cafe (Clark Quay)
Exit from Clark Quay MRT Exit A, look for the row of 2-story shophouse facing Hong Lim park.

Let's get ready to 杀!

Sino-Games SALE! 10% off storewide!

2012-02-01T15:18:00.002+08:00

Dear all,

As promised, the new Sino-games.com site is up and running!

In celebration, we are giving a 10% store-wide discount when you key in the following discount code in the "Checkout" section.

Discount code:

GCO4KVRSQMNX

Key in your discount code into the box shown in red in Step 2 of the Checkout screen for 10% off your purchase!

This promotion ends February 29th, so grab this opportunity and get yourself a good deal today!

But wait! That's not the end of the good news!

Starting 1st February, we are opening up our door-to-door delivery service to ALL Singapore orders, regardless of order price. We used to impose a minimum of $20.00 per order before we delivery door-to-door, but to thank you for your kind support, we are going to extend the delivery service no matter how small your order!

What are you waiting for? Click here to visit the new Sino-games.com NOW!!

杀!

New Shop-front Coming Soon

2012-01-29T18:04:00.001+08:00

The current Sino-Games.com shop is not user-friendly, and I will be the first to admit it.

We have been working on a brand new platform that is much much MUCH more user-friendly, and beautiful too!

Here's a sneak-peek of the work in progress. Hopefully we will have it up and running by next week!

Till then, are you 杀-ing like crazy of the Chinese New Year holidays?? 杀杀杀!!

1st SGS Gathering for 2012!

2012-01-26T17:45:00.000+08:00

Hiya folks!

Time to meet up to 杀! Yes it's been a while since the last meet up and I can't wait to meet you all for a game or five.

The details are as follow:

1st SanGuoSha Gathering of 2012

Date: 5th February (Sunday)
Venue: Settler's Cafe (Clark Quay MRT)
Time: 2:00pm to 5:00pm (Can be extended)
Expect to pay: $11.00 for 3 hours (Free-flow drinks)
*The cost is purely paid to Settler's Cafe. We make no profit out of these gatherings.

This time round, I will be bringing "Feng Sheng 风声" as well as "Cao Cao's Tomb 曹操墓" games for those who are interested to test them out.

Don't worry about not knowing anyone else. After a game or two, things go swimmingly! Just let loose and have some fun enjoying SGS and other games.

In order to cater for this event, I really need to ascertain how many people are coming. So please fill in the form below to register for this outing!

Hope to see you all then!

杀杀杀!!
<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Loading...&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

Jia Xu 贾诩 (SP012)

2012-01-13T17:10:00.000+08:00

Translated Description:
“Never a strategy miscalculated 算无遗策(suàn wú yí cè)”

Who is he?
I remember it clearly when the celebrity Chinese scholar Yi Zhong Tian 易中天 (famed for his televised lectures of ROTK) said: “Jia Xu was probably the smartest character during the whole Three Kingdom era.” As an advisor, Jia Xu’s work experience seems to be a little complicated. He previously served Dong Zhuo 董卓, Li Jué 李傕 and Zhang Xiu 张秀 before finally joining Cao Cao 曹操. Then he served as an official in Wei Kingdom under Cao Cao's son, Cao Pi 曹丕. Despite his flip-flopping loyalties, Jia Xu was an exceptional advisor. Not only did he know what his ruler was thinking, he also knew what his enemy was thinking. He always considered every detail and possibility, then predicted what would happen next with uncanny accuracy. According to historical records, he never made a single strategic mistake in his entire life. In the last few years of Cao Cao's rule when the irate ruler became extremely paranoid, many great advisors were slaughtered, but not Jia Xu. In my personal opinion, this man really is a legendary figure. If you want to know more details about him, just check out Ricky’s write-up about him and find out!

Why is he an SP character?
Just as the other SP characters, he changed his allegiances in history. SGS decided to make an SP version of him to complete the whole story of the Three Kingdoms.

Character ability 1: “Unmitigated Murder 完杀 (wán shā)” [Enforced ability]
During Jia Xu's turn, with the exception of himself, only characters who are on the brink of death (health equals zero or less) can use PEACH 桃.

Character ability 2: “Descend into Chaos 乱武 (luàn wǔ)” [Single-Use Ability]
During his action phase, Jia Xu can force every player, other than himself, to use an ATTACK 杀 on another player at the least distance away. If a player is unable to do so (no ATTACK cards to use or attack range cannot reach any player), the player will lose 1 unit of health. Recipients of the ATTACK need to use DODGE 闪 to evade. This ability will proceed in succession starting from the player after Jia Xu.

Character ability 3: “Behind the Curtain 帷幕 (wéi mù)” [Enforced ability]
Jia Xu cannot become the target of tool cards with the suit of "clubs" or "spades".

Additional info based on changes:
Nothing really changed except his allegiance and drawing. Well, this drawing does look better than the previous one, which is way too scary. However, lots of people think that his abilities should be changed after the change of his allegiance. His abilities do not support any of the Wei Rulers. Furthermore, Jia Xu never employed his “descend into chaos” ability again after joining Wei.

Wiki Links:
- Jia Xu Wiki

How to obtain this character?
He is not available on SGS online yet. For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #12 (December 2011).

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Auxiliary Rule Part 8: Hidden Ruler Mode

2011-12-24T20:45:00.001+08:00

Prologue by Ricky:
The Hidden Ruler mode is the first of a compilation of "official" auxiliary rules that was published in Zhuo You Zhi magazine. The post you see below is a direct translation of the original chinese article, thus all credits go to Zhuo You Zhi magazine.

Hidden Ruler mode 暗主公模式

The Hidden Ruler mode is one of the earliest unofficial modes, created based on the standard (25 characters) pack. The rules of this mode are almost the same as the standard ones with a slight difference:

The Ruler 主公 is unknown at the beginning of the game.

Recommended number of players: 4-10

Difficulty in learning this mode: 1 out of 5

Strategy involved: 3 out of 5

Fun factor: 2 out of 5

Basic rules

1. Pick your role card in the same way as the original gameplay. DO NOT EXPOSE YOUR
ROLE CARD EVEN IF YOU ARE THE RULER.

2. Pick your character in the same way as the original gameplay. YOKA suggests that
every player gets 5 character cards and choose one among them.

3.Game start: Every role card is upside down (which means the Ruler is hidden). And
place your character card normally as the official rule says. Every player’s health units
will be exactly the same as the character’s.

4. Choose a random player and let him or her choose a random number. Start with the
chosen player and count from one to the chosen number counterclockwise. The player
who gets the chosen number gets an additional health unit and has to expose his role
card, then gets to play first.

5. The game’s ending conditions and the Points-scoring system are the same as the
official ones.

Tips

1. Every player gets to think about how to play according to the only exposed Role card
and his or her own Role.

2. If you are the hidden Ruler, and you also choose a character with Ruler ability, you can
use the ability if and only if you choose to expose your Role card.

3. If the number of players is odd and the only exposed Role is a Defector, restart the
game.

Comments

The players are supposed to guess who the Ruler is in-game according to the situation
and other players’ actions. Though it’d probably cause lots of chaos and be hard to
guess the players’ roles, it would definitely be a new adventure to the people who are
used to playing SGS according to the official rules.

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Auxiliary Rules Part 7: Dual Characters Mode

2011-12-19T08:42:00.002+08:00

Article Contributed by:
- Kalvin Li

Description:
Dual Characters, as the name kinda suggests, this rule involves you possessing two character’s abilities and health. For example: Sun Quan and Lu Bu, they will have 8 health and have both their abilities. This game mode can incorporate the expansion pack, expansion characters and even Demi-Gods if you wish. Of course there are certain loop-holes in this mode such as Hua Tuo 华佗 and Huang Gai 黄盖 combined.

Gender:
The gender of a pair of characters can be determined by his or her health: You take on the gender of the character with higher max health limit. For example, Zhu Rong 祝融 (Female, 4 Health) and Lu Xun 陆逊 (Male, 3 health), you would be female. If both of your characters have the same amount of health and they are of different gender, you are considered “Unisex”, and that makes you vulnerable to all gender-related abilities and implications.

Allegiance:
The allegiance of a pair of characters can be determined in the same way as gender (higher max health), but if both your characters have the same health, the Ruler will choose your allegiance for you at the start of the game. If one of the pair of characters you have chosen is a Ruler Character, then you are automatically that character’s allegiance.

Of course, there are different adjustments for different game types.

3 on 3:
Besides the character distribution process, everything else remains the same. Instead of the characters being selected by the Defector 内奸 and the Ruler 主公, the players are handed out 4 characters to choose from. Each player can swap 1 character with any other player but the characters must be placed face down when swapped (like a points duel), this is called the “Swapping Phase”. The Ruler and the Defector may look and choose their loyalist or rebel’s characters at their team mate’s characters only after the “Swapping Phase”.

5-10 Players:
Rules that were previously mentions and can be applied will be applied The only difference is the Ruler’s Character selection. At the start of the game he is handed 3 Ruler Characters to choose from. The players must select which Ruler Character he/she wants to be, they are THEN handed 2 other characters to choose as their second of the pair.

Sino-Games Facebook "Speed-Shop" now open!

2011-12-15T21:12:00.003+08:00

Dear Readers,

In all honesty, i have always felt that the Sino-Games.com webshop has a lot of room to improve. It just isn't anywhere near as user-friendly as I would like it to be.

Then I stumbled upon "Tackthis!", a software which allows the creation of Facebook shops, and its pretty user-friendly as well.

But I'll let you be the judge of that, so go ahead and surf around a bit on the shop. You can find it under the "Tackthis!" tab on the left-column of the SGS English page. Go check it out!

Click on the picture to visit Sino-games.com's Facebook "Speed-shop"

One thing to note though, the Facebook Speed-shop is not the full-fledged Sino-Games.com shop since it only handles very light orders (such as SP cards, Demi-God cards, Expansion packs, and replacement cards). That's why it's a "Speed-shop", for quick purchases and light postage. Perhaps in the future I will consider porting everything over, provided the platform works well.

Thanks for all your support! 杀!

Silver Moon Lance 银月枪 (yín yuè qiāng) (SP010)

2011-12-15T19:53:00.000+08:00

Description:

Unlike some of the other weapons in SGS, the Silver Moon Lance didn’t really exist in history. It’s an imaginary spear that was designed by Kayak, one of the founders of the game. According to Kayak, the aim of this weapon was to introduce Zhao Yun 赵云’s weapon into SGS, yet the name was completely made-up because the real name of Zhao Yun’s weapon could not be found in any records. According to the historical descriptions, we only know that it was a lance, not exactly helpful for generating a "magical" killing tool.

This card first appeared in 2008 when SGS was created, but early players quickly found its ability over-powered, especially when equipped by certain characters. In 2009, YOKA “fixed” the bug by inexplicably making it even more destructive than the Zhu Ge Crossbow 诸葛连弩. It was also a lot more confusing to calculate damage. The writings were clearly on the wall for this card and YOKA removed this weapon altogether from the current deck we know today. As if in repentance for all that power in this weapon, the card is replaced with a NEGATE 无懈可击 card, a form of atonement perhaps for all the units of health that were lost while the Silver Moon Lance roamed.

Special ability:
Whenever you play a black-suited card outside of your turn, you can immediately ask a player within your attacking arrange to play a DODGE 闪 card or else that player will lose one unit of health.

Characters that match this weapon best:
All the characters that have abilities related to black-suit cards. For example, Zhao Yun and Demi-god Zhao Yun (who can use a black-suit ATTACK as a DODGE), Zhen Ji 甄姬 (who can use any black-suit card as a DODGE), Younger Zhuge Liang 卧龙诸葛亮 (who can use any black-suit card as a NEGATE), Sima Yi 司马懿 and Zhang Jiao 张角 (who can replace or exchange cards with their black-suit cards).

Why is it an SP card?
This is probably the first card that became a collectible because it is part of SGS Legend. It is also the only weapon in SGS whose ability can be activated outside of a player’s round. That means it’s not only a weapon but also acts like an armour. It can be incredibly powerful when paired with characters mentioned above. So in order to prevent a game from being over too quickly, the card was removed from SGS. It is for this exact reason that this card has become valued as a collector's item!

How to obtain this weapon?
It is not available on SGS online (and won’t be available in the future either). For obtaining this card (2011 version), you can purchase ZYZ magazine issue #10 (October 2011). If you want to obtain the first-edition card (2008 version), you have to look for it via websites like e-bay and it would be pretty expensive, good luck!

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Q Version Blog completed

2011-12-09T23:24:00.001+08:00

Dear Readers,

The Q version blog is finally complete, and ALL characters and cards have been updated. The only thing i did not do is create a "How to Play" page yet, because that's just very similar to the current game.

But for now, just enjoy all the cute pictures. Click on the images to go to the SGS Blog!

Have fun with the Q-version!! 杀!

Cài Wén Jī (Lady Cai) 蔡文姬 (SP009)

2011-12-08T21:08:00.001+08:00

Translated Description
“Extraordinary Talent 金璧之才(jīn bì zhī cái)”

Who is she?
If you ask me who was the most beautiful lady during the whole Three Kingdoms era, I really can't name one. The beautiful ladies always leave their names in history (just like Da Qiao 大乔, Xiao Qiao 小乔, Diao Chan 貂蝉). But if you ask me who was the most talented lady at the time, I am sure that must be Lady Cai, who is also called Cai Wen Ji 蔡文姬 in history. The proof is that she did not only leave her family name but also her first name (蔡琰Cài Yǎn) in the history books. In ancient China, that was a special honor reserved for only the smartest of ladies such as Zhen Ji 甄姬 (whose real name was 甄宓Zhen Mi), and Huang Yue Ying 黄月英. Lady Cai was a poet, a composer and was famous for her incredible memory in literature. Want to know more about her? Just check out the previous write up!

Why is she an SP character?
Technically speaking, Lady Cai is indebted to Cao Cao 曹操. Though she was born in a noble family, she spent 12 years as a prisoner under the Huns, until Cao Cao paid a heavy sum for her freedom. In return, she worked for Cao Cao and his Wei Kingdom. This special experience was really tragic, and also made her a special female character, both in history and SGS game. I guess the game-makers wanted to give her a sense of loyalty to her benefactor, thus this Wei version as the SP character.

Character ability1: “Dirge 悲歌 (bēi gē)”
Every instance a player suffers damage from an ATTACK, you can discard a card (on-hand or equipped), and the player who suffered the damage flips a judgement card.

If the judgement is “hearts”, the victim regains 1 unit of health.
If the judgement is “diamonds”, the victim draws 2 cards.
If the judgement is “clubs”, the attacker discards 2 cards.
If the judgement is “spades”, the attacker flips his/her character card over.

Character ability2: “Sorrow 断肠(duàn cháng)”
[Enforced ability] The player who kills you loses all of his/her character abilities until the end of the game.

Additional info based on changes:
Nothing much has changed except her portrait (and the allegiance). It’s probably just due to the unpleasant players’ reviews about the original portrait. The original was indeed quite scary, yet according to history, Lady Cai was a beautiful woman. This version presents that quite well but the sorrow on her face has gone. Anyway, for the readers out there, which one do you prefer?

Ricky: Actually I prefer the old portrait, which had that abandoned vagabond psycho-killer look. The old version reminds me of The White-Haired Demon 白发魔女 while this new version looks like she's totally decked out from a shopping spree.

Wiki Links:
- Cai Wen Ji Wiki

How to obtain this character?
She is not available on SGS online so far. For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine
issue #10 (October 2011).

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

SP Character Cards on sale on Sino-Games.com

2011-12-04T12:58:00.001+08:00

Dear Readers,

You probably already know how difficult it is to get your hands on the Zhuo You Zhi magazine, much less the Original SP cards themselves.

We've decided to bring in as many Zhuo You Zhi magazines as we can afford, so that we can get hold of the magazines AND the SP cards.

Extremely Rare copy of the March 2011 issue with SP Diao Chan

Truth is, most people just want the SP cards, and the magazine means little to them. Furthermore, the magazine weighs like a ton of bricks, so it really costs a bomb to mail them.

So we've decided to take out the SP card and sell it directly... which kinda means i'll have a big mountain of magazines without SP cards just waiting for the recyclers.

Left: Scanned image for SGS Blog. Right: Actual Diao Chan SP002 card (Original)

A word of warning though, these SP cards do not come cheap. We do our best to make sure that what we bring in is the Original stuff. So you can rest assured and order through us.

Click here to visit Sino-Games.com SP cards.

Thanks once again for all your support thus far. Have fun and Enjoy the SP cards! 杀!

Lǚ Bù 吕布 (SP008)

2011-12-03T14:37:00.001+08:00

Who is he?

I guess you are already very familiar with him. Lǚ Bù 吕布, the strongest fighter during the whole Three Kingdoms era. There have already been two versions of him in SGS (Neutral Heroes and Demi-God), but they have really outdone themselves this time. These two SP versions are both Demi-Gods, and pretty much insane!

Why is he an SP character?
Because it’s created for the SP mode: HuLao-Pass. HuLao-Pass Mode is designed according to the story of a famous battle in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. With regards to the HuLao-Pass mode, the game designers said: “Nowadays there are more and more expansions of SGS. People gradually concentrate more and more on the various and complicated abilities of new characters, and forget about the cultural background, the comprehension of the characters’ personalities, and enjoying the balance of the game. The design of HuLao-Pass Mode and this Demi-God version of Lu Bu are supposed to help players get back to the Three Kingdoms’ world and enjoy the simulated battle.”

Translated Description:
“The Myth of the Formidable 最强神话 (zuì qiáng shén huà)”

Character ability 1: “Horsemanship 马术 (mǎ shù)” [Enforced ability]
You will always be at -1 distance in any range calculations.

(Note: Same ability as Ma Chao 马超)

Character ability 2: “Without Equal 无双(wú shuāng)” [Enforced ability]
Whenever you use ATTACK杀, your target has to use 2 DODGE 闪 cards to successfully evade the attack. During a DUEL 决斗, your opponent needs to use 2 ATTACK cards for every one ATTACK card that you use.

(Note: Same ability as the original Lu Bu 吕布.)

When your health decreases to 4 units, your character card has to be changed immediately into this next character card.

Translated Description:
“The Furious God of Battle 暴怒的战神(bào nù de zhàn shén)”

Character ability 1: “Horsemanship 马术 (mǎ shù)” [Enforced ability]
You will always be at -1 distance in any range calculation.

Character ability 2: “Without Equal 无双(wú shuāng)” [Enforced ability]
Whenever you use ATTACK杀, your target has to use 2 DODGE 闪cards to successfully evade the attack. During a DUEL 决斗, your opponent needs to use 2 ATTACK cards for every one ATTACK card that you use.

Character ability 3: “Asura 修罗(xiū luó)”
At the beginning of your turn, you can discard one on-hand card in order to discard one Time- Delay Tool Card that is in your Judgement Area. The card you discard must be of the same suit as the Time-Delay Tool Card.

Character ability 4: “Divine Aura 神威 (shén wēi)” [Enforced ability]
During your drawing phase, you can draw an additional 2 cards. Your on-hand card limit is increased +2.

Character ability 5: “Divine Halberd 神戟 (shén jǐ)”
When you have no weapon equipped, your ATTACK card can target up to 3 different players.

Tip:
There are no LIGHTNING 闪电 cards and no expansions SO FAR in HuLao-Pass Mode on SGS online. Since this character is designed for HuLao-Pass Mode, the Time- Delay Tool Cards would only refer to ACEDIA 乐不思蜀.

Ability's relation to story:
Most of Demi-God Lu Bu’s abilities are extremely aggressive. They just represent his courage, bravery, and exceptional fighting prowess. Also, this Demi-God version of Lu Bu is designed for a battle with three other characters. That’s why he also has some efficient defensive abilities; for example, “Asura” can prevent him from being affected by ACEDIA, “Divinity” can let him have more cards to better defend himself during the game.

Additional info based on story:
Since these character cards are designed for HuLao-Pass Mode, you really need to know what happened at HuLao-Pass then. Ricky has made an excellent write-up for this story, just check it out on Lu Bu’s page.

Links and resources:
- Lu Bu Wiki
- Battle of HuLao Pass Wiki
- Asura Wiki

How to obtain this character?
Those two cards are available in HuLao-Pass Mode on SGS online now! (Of course VIP only, and there is no way to see them in other modes) For obtaining the cards, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #8 (August 2011).

Contributing Writer:
Cherry Cat

Christmas with Sino-Games.com!

2011-11-30T17:49:00.001+08:00

Looking to buy SGS as a Xmas gift?

From now till 23rd December, Sino-Games.com will help you gift-wrap your order and deliver it right to your doorstep (delivery valid for Singapore recipients only).

In fact, beginning 2012, Sino-games.com will be doing 100% door-to-door deliveries for all Singapore recipients (delivery charges apply). Unfortunately, we can't go door-to-door and deliver to other countries. We'd love to, but we don't have our own jet.

Take this opportunity to get FREE DELIVERY to Singapore locations whilst this offer last. Hurry!

SGS English Gets a new SKIN

2011-11-27T17:08:00.001+08:00

Dear Readers,

This blog is TWO years old. It seems like yesterday that I was blogging about Zhang Fei 张飞 (one of my first posts) and describing the history of the Wine culture in China in the WINE 酒 post.

With the old template getting rather tiresome, I have decided to switch to the new Blogger Dynamic template.

Yes it will take a bit of getting used to, but i love the much cleaner look now.

Here's my 2 cents worth on making the best of this new template:

- Check out the search function on the upper right of the blog for finding what you need.
(NOTE: The search function finds what is on THIS CURRENT PAGE. So to maximize the search ability, select "Flipcard" before using the search function (see next point).

- Mouse over "Sidebar" in the header and bring out the dropdown menu. Select "Flipcard" to get a visual timeline of my recent posts.

Thanks for the support the past 2 years and hope you will continue to support this blog!

Have fun and 杀!

Páng Dé 庞德 (SP006)

2011-11-25T17:42:00.000+08:00

Translated Description:
“Carrying The Coffin 抬榇之悟(tái chèn zhī wù)”

Who is he?
An admirable man. He is Pang De,a brave fighter and an exceptional general living in the Three Kingdoms era. In his entire life, he changed rulers multiple times, but nobody questioned his loyalty. He proved his devotion with his own life: he fought against enemies valiantly, and he even carried his coffin into battle to show his courage (See Ricky’s write-up about him, the “Most famous achievement” part). Unlike Lu Bu 吕布, who also changed ruler quite often (because the idiot killed his own ruler before jumping ship), Pang De gains all the
valiant titles from the historians, which I guess proves his heroic personality. Lu Bu, on the other hand, gets titles such as “Brave but without cunning, violent but without benevolence”, titles worthy only for a short-sighted boar.

Why is he an SP character?
Because the previous drawing of him is too ugly!!! But no, ZYZ magazine simply chose to release several SP characters with different allegiance and portraits. Pang De is just another one of them. All the new designs are supposed to help complete the whole Three Kingdoms’ story. The original version of him is considered as a neutral hero, whereas this SP version represents his last days as a general of Wei Kingdom. Anyway, personally, I am really happy to see this “carrying coffin” version of Pang De, which makes him 30% cooler!

Character ability1: “Horsemanship 马术 (mǎ shù)”
You will always have a -1 distance advantage (default “-1 horse” equipped)

Character ability2: “Fearsome Advance 猛进 (měng jìn)”
Whenever your ATTACK 杀is evaded by DODGE 闪, you can forcefully discard one of the opponents cards (on-hand or equipped). Note that you select the card for discarding and not the opponent.

Additional info based on changes:
Nothing special to say about this part. Both of his abilities are aggressive ones. Change of his allegiance really does not affect him too much. On the whole, his abilities are not cooperative with any Ruler Abilities and he could die early in the game from lack of defensives.

Wiki Links:
- Pang De Wiki

How to obtain this character?
He is not available on SGS online yet. For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #7 (July 2011).

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Q-Version English Blog

2011-11-19T16:42:00.001+08:00

Dear readers,

So i'm a kid on the inside. I like the cute cartoon drawings in the Q-version of SGS, but also realized that there are "hidden messages" behind some of the portraits!

Therefore I have created another blog called SGS-Q-Version specially dedicated to it. The Q-version blog will mostly contain content that is port over from this blog, but will contain my point of view about some of the hidden messages in the drawings.

Click here to access SQS-Q-Version blog.

Hope you guys and gals can continue to support the blog, and have a good squeal from all the cutesy drawings.

Have fun, and 杀!

Guān Yǔ 关羽 (SP007)

2011-11-19T13:55:00.002+08:00

Translated Description
“Marquis of HanShou 汉寿亭侯(hàn shòu tíng hóu)”

Who is he?
Even if you cannot identify him through his new appearance, you should have noticed the Red Hare 赤兔 and the Green Dragon Crescent Blade 青龙偃月刀. Bingo! He’s our loyal “second brother”, the warrior saint in legend, the bearded gentleman in history, Guan Yu.

Wait a minute... The frame of this card is blue? Is this like 徐庶Xu Shu, who has a blue frame but still belongs to 蜀 Shu? Oh my god he doesn’t even belong to Shu Kingdom any more? Why was his allegiance changed to 魏 Wei? Designer’s mistake? Printers ran out of blue ink? Don’t panic, Guan Yu never betrayed his only ruler and "Elder brother" 刘备Liu Bei. Want to know what’s going on here? Keep reading and find out!

Why is he an SP character?
Just like the SP Sun Shang Xiang 孙尚香, SP Guan Yu was created for the completion of the whole Three Kingdoms’ story. This SP version is designed to represent Guan Yu’s life experience under Cao Cao 曹操’s military. In return for being treated respectfully after being captured by Cao Cao, Guan Yu fought for Cao Cao against Yuan Shao 袁绍 for a short while, and was very successful! So successful in fact that Cao Cao really wanted Guan Yu change his allegiance. Guan Yu, of course, refused because of his loyalty to Liu Bei. It was actually Cao Cao who gave him the title of Marquis of Han Shou whilst under his service. After some time Guan Yu left Cao Cao with nothing but his Red Hare and Green Dragon Crescent Blade, riding through thousands of miles to finally rejoin his brothers. This special experience also explains why he let Cao Cao escape after the huge loss at Battle of Red Cliffs 赤壁之战. For more info, just check Ricky’s write up of Guan Yu (蜀Shu) under the “Most famous achievement” section.

Character ability1: “Warrior Saint 武圣 (wǔ shèng)”
Every card with a “heart” or “diamonds” suit (effectively all red-suit cards) can be used as an ATTACK 杀card.

Character ability2: “Single Calvary 单骑(dān qí)” [Awakening ability]
At the beginning of your turn, if your number of on-hand cards is larger than your current health units, AND the RULER for the game is Cao Cao, you must reduce your maximum health by 1 unit. You then permanently acquire the ability “Horsemanship 马术”

(Recall: Horsemanship 马术 = You will always have -1 distance in range calculations).

Additional info based on changes:
I guess it would really take some time for the players to get used to his new allegiance, because he cannot use ATTACK 杀 for Liu Bei any more! However, he can now react to both “Royal Escort” of Cao Cao and “Exalt the Powerful” of Cao Pi 曹丕.

Wiki Link:
- Guan Yu Wiki

How to obtain this character?
He is not available on SGS online yet. For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #8 (August 2011).

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Sūn Shàng Xiáng 孙尚香 (SP005)

2011-11-16T22:38:00.001+08:00

Translated Description
“Exceptional Marriage 梦醉良缘(mèng zuì liáng yuán)”

Who is she?
A beautiful young bride wearing a traditional red wedding dress, sitting in the bridal chamber smiling mysteriously at you. Through the red chiffons, you seem to be able to smell the faint aroma around the new wedding bed, is she waiting for someone? Oh, I forgot I am not writing an erotic novel! So this girl is the SP version of Sūn Shàng Xiāng 孙尚香, Sun Quan 孙权’s younger sister and Liu Bei刘备’s second wife. You are probably very familiar with her and her abilities in SGS. But why did they totally change her appearance? Keep reading and find it out!

Why is she an SP character?
According to the designers of the SP characters, the female characters are always extremely popular and welcome among SGS players. That’s why they made a new version of Lady Sun. They didn’t just change her appearance, but also changed her allegiance from Wu to Shu. These two changes perfectly match both the story and the traditional custom in ancient China: From the moment she married Liu Bei, she no longer belonged to the kingdom of her birth. Makes you wonder then, if the normal Sun Shang Xiang is considered "single"... with cleavage showing and all it's no surprise!

Character ability1: “Marriage 结姻 (jié yīn)”
During the action phase, Sun Shang Xiang can choose to discard 2 on-hand cards and pick any male character that is not at full-health. By doing so, both the male character and herself will recover 1 unit of health each. Limited to only 1 use per turn.

Character ability2: “Warrior Lady 枭姬 (xiāo jī)”
Whenever any equipped card is removed from her equipped items area, Sun Shang Xiang can immediately draw 2 cards from the deck. Note that 2 cards can be drawn for each equipped card that is removed. This applies also to changing the equipped item (ie: replacing one weapon with another weapon).

Additional info based on changes:
There is no doubt that this version of Sun Shang Xiang is stronger than the previous one because the cooperation between her and Liu Bei is more useful and efficient than the one between her and Sun Quan. That’s why she always gets the most attacks in the game (there is a saying in Chinese 红颜薄命 which means “A beautiful girl often leads an unfortunate life). Anyway, the guys should feel really lucky that no matter how her appearance changes, she still keeps her G-Cup. Woo hoo!

Note: according to the game designer, Sun Shang Xiang and SP Sun Shang Xiang won’t appear in the same game on SGS online. But for the off-line game there is no such limitation. And when SP Sun Shang Xiang uses PEACH 桃 to save her brother Sun Quan, he can no longer get an extra unit of health back.

How to obtain this character?
She is available on SGS online now! (Of course VIP only, or you can just buy it in SGS online market) For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #6 (June 2011).

Wiki Link:
- Sun Shang Xiang Wiki

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

App for SGS English: Looking for App makers!

2011-11-10T16:31:00.001+08:00

Dear readers,

The next extension of the SGS English blog is to convert it into an App for Apple and Android phones. But i would much rather have a reader of SGS create it with me since you would know the ins-and-outs.

Anyone out there create Apps?!?! Contact me!!

sg.rockstar@gmail.com

Here's the vision: There are 3 ways to search for SGS translations using the App.

A. Photo capture of card that needs translation

1. Activate the phone camera to be able to take a picture of any SGS card

2. Image recognition software to be able to recognize the card

3. The translation for that card is brought up immediately.

B. Browse the App through categories

1. "Browsing menu" shows categories "How to play", "cards", "characters", "expansions"

2. Mosaic of images of the cards appear. Select the card needed.

C. Search function

1. Be able to search the App using english as well as chinese characters.

The whole aim is to create an App for YOU. Do help out in making this an awesome App.

Have fun and 杀!

Yuán Shù 袁术 (SP004)

2011-11-07T15:17:00.002+08:00

Translated Description
“The Emperor of Zhong Dynasty 仲家帝 (zhòng jiā dì)”

Who is he?
An overweening ambitious younger brother. A terrible general. An opportunist. An immature politician. Alas, a daydreamer without a happy ending. Born from a noble, rich, powerful and ancient family as the only son of the first wife, Yuán Shù seemed to have nothing to worry about in his life. But even with such little talent, he was arrogant enough. He considered himself as the only right person to conquer the world, that’s why he couldn’t even get along well with his half-brother, Yuan Shao 袁紹. He was always searching for the right opportunity, and he finally found it when Dong Zhuo 董卓 was defeated by Sun Jian 孫坚. The imperial seal (the symbol of the legitimate ruler in China) was in the Sun family’s hand, but Sun Jian was quickly killed and Yuan Shu put Lady Sun under house arrest to force the seal out of Sun Ce 孫策's hands. After getting the seal, he declared himself emperor under his short-lived Zhong Dynasty in 197, which instantly made him everyone’s enemy.

Why is he an SP character?
Cherry: I honestly don’t know! Because his family name is Yuan? one of the biggest noble families in ancient China? Because he’s Yuan Shao’s younger brother? Because he had such a terrible reputation at that time? Because he is one of the only two characters during the Three Kingdoms period that had absolutely no good titles according to all the Chinese historians? (The other would be Dong Zhuo of course) Or, just because his character abilities are super difficult to translate and to explain in English? But there is at least one thing for sure, that no matter in real history or in the SGS game, he is just an annoying and troublesome guy. Wondering why? Just play and find out yourself!

Ricky: I guess one possible reason is because there are only so few "unlikeable" characters in the story. Like Cherry mentioned, there is the ancient Chinese equivalent of Jabba the Hutt, Dong Zhuo. The only other would be the useless and selfish Yuan Shu. No better way to shame him for all eternity by giving him horrid playability in a card game.

Character ability 1: “Mediocrity 庸肆 (yōng sì)” [Enforced ability]
During your drawing phase, you draw an extra X cards, X being the total number of allegiances still in play. During your discard phase, you must discard at least as many cards as there are allegiances still in play. If you have less cards than there are allegiances, you must discard all of them.

Note: Allegiance here refers to Shu, Wei, Wu, or Heroes.

Character ability 2: “The Pseudo-Emperor 偽帝 (wěi dì)” [Enforced ability]
You possess the ruler ability of the current ruler.

Ability Tips:
1. X, in Yuan Shu’s case, does NOT mean the total amount of players, but number of Allegiance. For example, before your drawing phase starts there are Shu, Wei, Wu and Heroes characters alive, you draw 6 cards (X = 4, so additional 4 cards on top of your normal 2 cards).

2. During your discard phase, if there’s only a Shu, Wei and Heroes left in the game (3 allegiances), you must discard at least 3 cards, BUT you must also discard any number of cards in order to keep your hand equal to or less than your current health units. You can choose to discard your equipped cards.

3. Example: During your discard phase there are 3 allegiances in play, you have 2 equipped cards and 5 on-hand cards, and you have 3 units of health. You can choose to discard your 2 equipped and 1 of your on-hand cards (to match the ability constraint of 3 cards discarded), but you’ll still need to throw away one more card because your total on-hand cards is higher than your current health. Or, you can keep your equipped cards and throw away 3 on-hand cards, reducing your number of on-hand cards to below your current health and complying with the constraint of your ability. Any mix of discarded equipped and on-hand cards is possible, as long as it obeys both the specific ability rule and the game’s general rule.

4. Another example: During your discard phase you have 1 card on-hand and 1 equipped, and there are 3 allegiances left in the game. You need to discard both your cards, which means you would have absolutely NOTHING left.

5. Yuan Shu doesn’t have any RULER ability! (The frame of his card is white, not yellow as the other characters that have ruler abilities.) “The Pseudo-Emperor” is just his ability. If the current ruler has no ruler ability, or you choose Yuan Shu as the ruler, you would have only his first ability. And in any case, you would always be considered as a neutral hero.

6.The ruler ability you have would be exactly the same as the current ruler. For example, the current ruler is Cao Cao 曹操, you can use “Royal Escort 护驾”, which means you can ask any Wei character, including Cao Cao himself, to use DODGE 闪on your behalf when applicable.

Ability's relation to story
His first ability “Mediocrity” represents perfectly his personality but mixed with an overindulgent lifestyle. He is just an ordinary person with little intelligence, but he’s too greedy, always dreaming about the things he cannot handle. Finally, because of his overindulgence, he lost everything including his own life. Although he declared himself as an emperor, he never got recognized even by his own forces. Ironically, he still hasn’t been recognized 1800 years later! In SGS, although he has the ability “The Pseudo-Emperor”, he is still not one of the ruler characters.

Additional info based on story:
1. Most famous achievement – Being arrogant and stupid? Stealing the imperial seal? Declaring himself emperor when the emperor of Han Dynasty was still alive? Fighting against his brother? Making his people poor and starve all the time? Well, I suppose his biggest achievement is having absolutely no achievement. He was nothing but a son from Yuan family, was that fortunate? Or unfortunate?

2. Cause of death - After declaring himself emperor, he was besieged by all the warlords at that time, especially Cao Cao, Liu Bei 刘备 and Lü Bu 吕布. In 199, he gave the imperial seal to his brother Yuan Shao, and tried to seek refuge. Yuan Shao sent his son Yuan Tan 袁谭 to Yuan Shu's rescue, but it was too late, Yuan Shu's forces were destroyed by Liu Bei. Yuan Shu died of grief shortly thereafter.

Wiki Link:
Yuan Shu Wiki

Useful Tips:
1. Always keep in mind that you need to discard more cards than others, so don’t use your cards too indulgently. Otherwise you might find yourself with nothing left after your discard phase.

2. You are the only character in SGS that can discard equipped cards during your discard phase, so make good use of your equipment: choose the proper ones and save the others for your discard phase; if you are injured, don’t forget to throw the equipped Silver Lion Helmet 白銀獅子away to get 1 unit of health back.

How to obtain this character?
Oh he’s one of the most popular characters on SGS online now! (Of course VIP only, or you can just buy it in SGS online market) For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #5 (May 2011).

Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat

Gōngsūn Zàn 公孙瓒 (SP003)

2011-11-02T22:45:00.001+08:00

Translated Description
“The Whitehorse General 白馬將軍 (bái mǎ jiāng jūn)”

Who is he?
Among the starry sky composed by the heroic legends during the period of the Three Kingdoms, the Whitehorse General Gongsun Zan was like a bright meteor, illuminating the darkness in the north part of China. However, coming in a hurry like a real meteor, he disappeared from history in a hurry as well. Between his
diligence, good looks, education, and a noteworthy resonant voice, he caught the eye of a royal member of the Han dynasty, who married his daughter to him. He spent the first half of his life crusading against the nomadic tribes in northern China, and each tribe there was afraid of his name. He had a strong preference for white horses: he chose three thousand horsemen as his elite troops and allocated the soldiers with white horses, earning his title of Whitehorse General. But alas how did such a handsome and competent General fall to such dramatic ruin? Read on to find out!

Why is he an SP character?
Unlike characters with SP versions due to a change of allegiance (like Sun Shang Xiang 孙尚香), or minor revisions (like Diao Chan 貂蝉's portrait), Gongsun Zan is a new addition. As such, his abilities don’t allow the same level of cooperation as other characters (e.g. Liu Bei 刘备, Zhuge Liang 诸葛亮 and Huang Yueying 黄月英, etc.). KayaK, one of the founders of SGS, said: “People should not compare the abilities of the SP characters with the normal ones, it’s not comparable. I know that Gongsun Zan’s abilities may be way too weak comparing to other expansions, but that’s why we chose him to be a SP character, it’s a proper way to introduce him to the game.”

Ok KayaK, we get the idea. Now let's bring on the firepower!

Character ability: “Righteous Cavalry 义从 (yì cóng)” [Enforced ability]
When your health is more than 2 units, you have -1 distance in any range calculations. When your health is equal or less than 2 units, you have +1 distance in any range calculations.

Ability's relation to story
The design of Gongsun Zan’s ability reflects perfectly the character’s whole life experience: first half of his life as a brave young general and last half of his life as a cruel conservative dictator. When Gongsun Zan was just deployed to Youzhou (a state in northern China, including a part of Beijing, a part of Tianjin and the south part of Liaoning Province), he led his Whitehorse cavalry to quell rebellions and won honor; in his last years he just locked himself behind the solid walls and stored lots of grain with him - only
women and boys under seven years old were allowed to come into his fortress.

Additional info based on story:
1. Most famous achievement - Gongsun Zan was famous for his preference of white horses and his Whitehorse Cavalry. At first the Cavalry was just his personal guards, then it became the top 1 light cavalry during the Three Kingdoms period. With these excellent mounted troops, he even made the Huns, who have been always famous for their horsemanship, be afraid of meeting him and his Whitehorse cavalry.

2. Cause of death - I would say the real cause of his death was his vanity, cruelty and tyranny. He used to be a hardcore warmonger, and then he lost all his fighting spirit and his mercy. In the end he was surrounded by Yuan Shao 袁绍 in the luxury grave he had made for himself and finally committed suicide. The legend of the Whitehorse Cavalry faded away in history as well.

Wiki Link:
Gongsun Zan Wiki

Usage Tips:
The ability of Gongsun Zan relies on the range calculation (both attack and defense). So even if you were sitting beside him with a crossbow in your hand, after making his HP drop to 2, you could not keep attacking anymore. But for the characters whose abilities don’t rely on range, like Xiahou Yuan 夏侯渊, Zhou Yu 周瑜 and Diao Chan, that wouldn’t be a problem. And a series of AOE from Cao Cao 曹操 would be a death threat to Gongsun Zan as well. Interestingly, the ability of Yuan Shao, who killed Gongsun Zan in history, can help him kill Gongsun Zan in the game easily too.

How to obtain this character?
He is available on SGS online now! (But VIP only) For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #4 （April 2011).

Contributing Writers:
- Cherry Cat